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  • #46
    Hi,
    I had a three hour drive home from st. Louis. We stopped at the half way point so that I could get out and move around some. I was so heavily medicated when i left the hospital that I didnt even see the Arch as we headed east because i was already asleep and stayed asleep the entire way. Having our crossover vehicle was helpful too because it was easy to get in and out of. I only needed one pillow to lean back on.

    Donna
    Female - 49 yrs old at surgery
    Surgery 5/5/11 - Dr. Bridwell, St. Louis
    Fused T3-L3
    60 degree thoracic curve corrected to 30 degrees
    Tennis player & returning to the courts!
    http://s1050.photobucket.com/profile/walkingmom1/index

    Comment


    • #47
      Originally posted by TwinmomTN View Post
      She had a good day. She walked to the door and back and sat for 20 minutes. The PTs are awesome.
      Here's my question...we have a six hour drive home...how did you handle breaks?
      Our ride was 3 hours; we stopped & had him walk around halfway home for maybe 15mins. Son actually lay on memory foam in the back seat, which was huge as I cringed every time we hit a dip in the road or a pothole or turned a corner. He still uses that mem foam on the entire seat when we have the 3hr drive back to the dr's office for checkups, helps tremendously.
      Mom of 14yo son diagnosed Oct 2011
      Surgery 1/3/12 w Dr. Geof Cronen,
      Tampa General Hospital T3 to L1
      Jacob's pre surg curves: T58 & L31 12/28/11
      photos & xrays in "First-Time Surgery" thread "Before & After"

      Comment


      • #48
        Originally posted by TwinmomTN View Post
        She had a good day. She walked to the door and back and sat for 20 minutes. The PTs are awesome.

        She is still having "cotton" mouth and is only allowed 1/2 a small cup of ice.

        She asked what is the average on the spirometer when laying down?

        Here's my question...we have a six hour drive home...how did you handle breaks?
        Lenke's nurse told us they do not like their patients being in a car more than a maximum of 5 hours when heading home. Kelly told my husband he had to stop every 1 - 1.5 hours so I could get out to walk. Since we had an 8 hour drive one-way, we stopped 1/2 way in Clarksville, TN for the night. I'm thankful Pam stopped by to meet me. Be sure that when you do hit the road for home, time it so that you leave right after Pam has a dose of pain meds. Is she taking any of the Oxy meds?

        Do you know when Pam will be discharged? How are you doing? Where are you staying in STL once she is discharged?

        Warmly,
        Doreen
        44 years old at time of surgery, Atlanta GA

        Pre-Surgery Thorasic: 70 degrees, Pre-Surgery Lumbar: 68 degrees, lost 4 inches of height in 2011
        Post-Surgery curves ~10 degrees, regained 4 inches of height

        Posterior T3-sacrum & TLIF surgeries on Nov 28, 2011 with Dr. Lenke, St. Louis
        2 rods, 33 screws, 2 cages, 2 connectors, living a new life I never dreamed of!

        http://thebionicachronicles.blogspot.com/

        Comment


        • #49
          Postop day 4

          Pam was cleared for a liquid diet of chicken broth and jello on day 4. She also had her drain lines and pain clicker removed. She is now getting oxycotton orally as well as a couple of muscle relaxers. PT is though but she is doing it. She doesn't have the strength to get up on her own but the PT keeps telling her that will come.
          Pam, age 49
          Thoracolumbar curves 80 and 40 corrected to 20 degrees
          April 20, 2012 surgery with Dr. Lenke
          T-3 to sacrum

          Comment


          • #50
            Originally posted by TwinmomTN View Post
            Pam was cleared for a liquid diet of chicken broth and jello on day 4.
            I guess I must have been lucky; I got chicken broth and jello during the 2nd day, when I was still in the ICU, which means somewhat less than 24 hours after the surgery, as I was moved out of the ICU about 24 hours after I woke up in the recovery room.

            Glad to hear she's doing well....

            -- Mary
            -- Mary D. Taffet
            Lumbar curve 27 degrees in 07/2007 > 34 degrees in 03/2009 > 38 degrees in 02/2011 > 42 degrees in 09/2011
            Laminectomy L2-L5, Fusion T9-S1 (sacrum) with pelvic fixation 01/23/2012 w/ Dr. Richard Tallarico, Upstate Orthopedics, Syracuse, NY

            Comment


            • #51
              Glad she is making progress! Sounds like she will be released soon. I will keep sending good thoughts your way!

              Evelyn
              age 48
              80* thoracolumbar; 40* thoracic
              Reduced to ~16* thoracolumbar; ~0* thoracic
              Surgery 3/14/12 with Dr. Lenke in St. Louis, T4 to S1 with pelvic fixation
              Broken rods 12/1/19; scheduled for revision fusion L1-L3-4 with Dr. Lenke 2/4/2020
              Not "confused" anymore, but don't know how to change my username.

              Comment


              • #52
                Postop day 5

                Pam is still a little loopy from the meds, so I'm still updating. She had a great day. The catheter was removed, and she was cleared for solid food this morning. She still took it easy on the diet all day, but her bowels did start working tonight. We were relieved in more ways than one...LOL. She just needs a little more work on bed mobility and continued work on her breathing, but we can see some light at the end of the tunnel now.
                Pam, age 49
                Thoracolumbar curves 80 and 40 corrected to 20 degrees
                April 20, 2012 surgery with Dr. Lenke
                T-3 to sacrum

                Comment


                • #53
                  It's going really well. I think holding off on the food for those 4 days is probably a good thing. I was allowed to eat on day 2 and was constipated for 9 days. What a miserable time.

                  Very happy to hear things going so smoothly!
                  Surgery March 3, 2009 at almost 58, now 63.
                  Dr. Askin, Brisbane, Australia
                  T4-Pelvis, Posterior only
                  Osteotomies and Laminectomies
                  Was 68 degrees, now 22 and pain free

                  Comment


                  • #54
                    I went about 9 days NPO. After I ate and had some “movement”, I left the next day. I think that having noisy neighbors in my room drove me out of there sooner than I should have.

                    There is nothing better than quiet........

                    My radio broke in my car, and I didn’t even bother fixing it for 3 years. If I need music, I just hum “Tie a yellow ribbon around the old oak tree” by Toni Orlando and Dawn. Anybody remember that one? The 70’s were hard times....(smiley face)

                    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBL2kzKg4nY

                    Looks as if Pam has passed 3rd base and is heading for home. She will read this and laugh...hopefully, the whole forum wont be humming this song tomorrow.
                    Ed
                    49 yr old male, now 63, the new 64...
                    Pre surgery curves T70,L70
                    ALIF/PSA T2-Pelvis 01/29/08, 01/31/08 7" pelvic anchors BMP
                    Dr Brett Menmuir St Marys Hospital Reno,Nevada

                    Bending and twisting pics after full fusion
                    http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/showt...on.&highlight=

                    My x-rays
                    http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/attac...2&d=1228779214

                    http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/attac...3&d=1228779258

                    Comment


                    • #55
                      Postop day7

                      Here's a message from Pam

                      After getting clearence from PT and OT I was released today (Friday). Pain has been well controlled except for a couple of instances. Bed mobility is my biggest challenge right now. I haven't used the spin kit tools yet. Did anybody else have problems getting in and out of bed? Thanks to evertbody for remembering me during this time.
                      Pam, age 49
                      Thoracolumbar curves 80 and 40 corrected to 20 degrees
                      April 20, 2012 surgery with Dr. Lenke
                      T-3 to sacrum

                      Comment


                      • #56
                        Pam,
                        Going home makes everything better. As for getting in and out of bed . . . I just tried to log roll as smoothly as possible onto pillows. We had a new mattress and a 4 inch topper, so we bought a medical stool to make it easier for me since the mattress was rather high. Holding on the the handle of the of the medical stool really helped me push myself up and lower myself gently. Be sure to sit on the side of the bed for a while and also stand for a minute before taking off. When I was on the pain meds, I got up quickly and started walking immediately one day and became dizzy and blacked out. Be careful. I'll be anxious to see your before and after pictures.
                        Karen

                        Surgery-Jan. 5, 2011-Dr. Lenke
                        Fusion T-4-sacrum-2 cages/5 osteotomies
                        70 degree thoracolumbar corrected to 25
                        Rib Hump-GONE!
                        Age-60 at the time of surgery
                        Now 66
                        Avid Golfer & Tap Dancer
                        Retired Kdgn. Teacher

                        See photobucket link for:
                        Video of my 1st Day of Golf Post-Op-3/02/12-Bradenton, FL
                        Before and After Picture of back 1/7/11
                        tap dancing picture at 10 mos. post op 11/11/11-I'm the one on the right.
                        http://s1119.photobucket.com/albums/k630/pottoff2/

                        Comment


                        • #57
                          Originally posted by TwinmomTN View Post
                          Here's a message from Pam

                          After getting clearence from PT and OT I was released today (Friday). Pain has been well controlled except for a couple of instances. Bed mobility is my biggest challenge right now. I haven't used the spin kit tools yet. Did anybody else have problems getting in and out of bed? Thanks to evertbody for remembering me during this time.
                          Pam,

                          Glad to hear your'e doing well. I don't know what you mean by "spin kit tools", so I can't help you there.

                          I had to practice getting into and out of bed all by myself repeatedly before being cleared by the PT for discharge after my surgery. I always get into my bed from the right side because my husband's twin is just to the left of my bed. I start off by sitting on my bed sort of in the middle of the right side, and then lowering my right elbow to the pillow. Then I lift my legs up off the floor and put them under my covers, with a little bit of extra effort needed to get my right leg all the way up. While it seems that I'm putting my elbow on the pillow at about the same time that I'm lifting my legs up, I'm guessing that the elbow gets planted first. Then I pull the covers up over me as best I can. As I still use the walker at the edge of my bed, I then lean over just a touch to turn off the flashlight that my husband attached to the walker (he's already asleep by this time). Then I first lay the side of my head on the pillow, and at this point, my back is pointing to my husband's bed, and my face is pointing to the wall. Then I use the trick that the PT taught me of bending my knees. Only when my knees are bent do I attempt the log roll to get onto my back. Now that I can do it a bit more easily, I'll log roll again if I want to get over on my other side, now facing my husband's bed if I want to.

                          But the first 2 weeks I was home after the surgery, I never even tried to sleep on my back; I stayed on my right side the whole time. Sometimes my knees were bent, and sometimes they weren't. I had a 2-level pillow, with a standard pillow underneath my more back and neck friendly WAL-PIL-O. That helped to keep my head elevated a bit so that I was a bit more comfortable spending the night trying to sleep on my right side.

                          Then when I needed to get up, I would sort of reverse the process of getting in. First I would lift my head up a bit and support myself on my right elbow again, then I would move the covers off as best I could. Next as I carefully moved my legs to the floor, I would push off of the pillow with my arm to raise myself to a seated position -- which I had already been doing for several years before the surgery all on my own, so that part of the sequence was already routine and quite familiar to me. Then when I was once again sitting on my bed, I would carefully get up with the help of the walker. So while the getting in to bed routine was something I had to learn fresh, the getting out of bed routine wasn't really that much different from what I had already been using for several years by that point (except for the walker part that is).

                          I do remember while still in the hospital, when a nurse would need to inspect the incision, etc., I was asked to roll over. I remember first grabbing the side rail and then using it to log roll myself to the side, and I remember it was very painful most of the time, and when I still had a pain clicker button, I would always click it before having to roll.

                          Fortunately it got a lot easier over time. I still have some difficulty when I attempt to log roll onto my left side, but that may well be due to trying to keep shifting myself over far enough so that I can roll that far in my small twin bed.

                          While I can get into and out of bed without much of a problem, I still don't sleep comfortably at all. Whatever you can do to make your bed more comfortable for you would be worthwhile.

                          -- Good luck,
                          Mary
                          -- Mary D. Taffet
                          Lumbar curve 27 degrees in 07/2007 > 34 degrees in 03/2009 > 38 degrees in 02/2011 > 42 degrees in 09/2011
                          Laminectomy L2-L5, Fusion T9-S1 (sacrum) with pelvic fixation 01/23/2012 w/ Dr. Richard Tallarico, Upstate Orthopedics, Syracuse, NY

                          Comment


                          • #58
                            Postop day 8

                            Here's a note from Pam

                            We're going to stay at the lodge for a few days before heading home. Laying on my back is hard I can only do it for about 5 minutes. How long did it take for this to improve in your case?
                            Pam, age 49
                            Thoracolumbar curves 80 and 40 corrected to 20 degrees
                            April 20, 2012 surgery with Dr. Lenke
                            T-3 to sacrum

                            Comment


                            • #59
                              Originally posted by TwinmomTN View Post
                              Here's a note from Pam

                              We're going to stay at the lodge for a few days before heading home. Laying on my back is hard I can only do it for about 5 minutes. How long did it take for this to improve in your case?
                              I found it very difficult to lie on my back while the dressing was still on, though I had to for the physical therapist who came to my house because he had me doing some exercises while laying on my back in my bed.

                              But once the dressing came off, which happened during my first post-op visit about 3 weeks after the surgery, the pain I felt when lying on my back was dissipated quite a bit. Not gone entirely, but enough less pain to allow me to try sleeping on my back at that point. The vast majority of my pain dissipated after the dressing was removed; it had been applied so tightly that it had really pulled on the surrounding skin -- not to mention being plastic that was under me when I had to lie on my back doing those exercises for the home-based PT.

                              I don't know what sort of dressing you have, so I can't say whether or not your experience could end up being similar to mine.

                              -- Good luck,
                              Mary
                              -- Mary D. Taffet
                              Lumbar curve 27 degrees in 07/2007 > 34 degrees in 03/2009 > 38 degrees in 02/2011 > 42 degrees in 09/2011
                              Laminectomy L2-L5, Fusion T9-S1 (sacrum) with pelvic fixation 01/23/2012 w/ Dr. Richard Tallarico, Upstate Orthopedics, Syracuse, NY

                              Comment


                              • #60
                                Hi Pam! Congrats on being out of the hospital! That has to be some kind of record from the time you found out you were having surgery to the time you were released.

                                Regarding your questions, I slept on "eggshell" foam even at the hotel, and I actually preferred my back. But I had to have all of the sheets, blankets, PJs, etc. completely flat. Still do. It is okay to sleep on your side or even stomach, according to Kelly, if that's more comfortable. Try a pillow between your knees on your side. After I got home, I started sleeping on memory foam, and I'm telling you I could stay there all day! I do not use a pillow under my head at all. Just totally flat on my back.

                                For logrolling, that does get MUCH easier after a couple of weeks. But, try to remember to tighten your abs, keep your shoulders & hips aligned and use your arms and legs to move you. To get into bed, I sit on the edge and fall to my right elbow at the same time I'm lifting my left leg up. I make sure eveything is straight on my side before I roll to my back. Getting out is just the reverse. Make myself straight. Cross arms on chest and bend knees. Roll to side. Then drop legs off the side of the bed as I push up with my arms. It hurts less when I remember to tighten my abs.

                                Now that I'm six weeks out, I find I am moving more at night, logrolling without even thinking about it to my side. It will come!

                                Best,
                                Evelyn
                                age 48
                                80* thoracolumbar; 40* thoracic
                                Reduced to ~16* thoracolumbar; ~0* thoracic
                                Surgery 3/14/12 with Dr. Lenke in St. Louis, T4 to S1 with pelvic fixation
                                Broken rods 12/1/19; scheduled for revision fusion L1-L3-4 with Dr. Lenke 2/4/2020
                                Not "confused" anymore, but don't know how to change my username.

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